Iran takes action. No longer only through its network of fighters spread across the Middle East, from the Lebanese Hezbollah to the Yemeni Houthis who continue to shoot at passing ships in the Red Sea, triggering a reaction from the United States.
During the night between Monday and Tuesday, the air forces of the Revolutionary Guards launched “ballistic missiles” over Iraq and Syria: the first raid to send a signal to enemy Israel and its ally the US which “create insecurity in the region”, the second to “avenge” the bloody attack in early January in Kerman claimed by ISIS. In an intersecting – and for the moment still indirect – clash, the US army has once again struck pro-Iranian rebels in Yemen, while the Jewish State has launched the most massive attack against the Party of God militiamen in southern Lebanon.
In striking Erbil, the capital of the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, Tehran claimed to have “destroyed one of the main espionage headquarters of the Zionist regime (Mossad)“. According to a Pasdaran statement, the target was “the center for the development of espionage operations and the planning of terrorist actions in the region and above all in our beloved country”. Local authorities spoke of “at least four civilians” killed , including well-known real estate entrepreneur Peshraw Dizayee and other members of his family.
The Prime Minister of Kurdistan, Masrour Barzani, rejected as “completely unfounded” and “unjustified” the fact that an Israeli intelligence service headquarters was targeted, underlining how the Iranian attacks only hit civilians and private homes, including that of the entrepreneur. “These attacks must not go unanswered,” he thundered from Davos.
The central government in Baghdad reacted by condemning “an attack on its sovereignty and its people”, summoning the Iranian ambassador to Iraq and recalling his own from Tehran. Iraq also announced “a complaint to the United Nations Security Council” and a commission of inquiry to demonstrate “to Iraqi and international public opinion the falsity of the accusations of those responsible for these reprehensible acts”. The Iranian attack was also condemned by the US as “irresponsible”: explosions were heard at the time of the raids even near the American consulate in Erbil without consequences. An Iraqi security source told the ABC that the anti-ISIS Coalition forces stationed in the region – in which Italy also participates – shot down three drones near the airport.
In Syria, however, Iranian forces announced that they had struck in Aleppo “the meeting places of the commanders and the main elements linked to the recent terrorist operations, in particular the Islamic State”, as revenge for the double attack on 3 January near the tomb of General Qassem Soleimani – killed by the USA 4 years earlier – which caused almost 100 deaths in Kerman. Tehran then threatened new actions “until the last drops of the martyrs’ blood are avenged.”
The feared escalation increasingly appears to be a reality across the entire region. After yet another attack by pro-Iranian Houthis on an American bulk carrier and a Greek cargo ship, Washington responded by striking anti-ship missile sites in Yemen that posed “an imminent threat” to maritime traffic in the Red Sea.
The United States has also decided to reinstate Yemen’s Houthi rebels on the list of terrorist organizations, two knowledgeable sources told the Associate Press. Designated as a terrorist group during Donald Trump’s presidency, the Houthis were removed from the same list by President Joe Biden in 2021, to allow humanitarian aid to enter Yemen.
Israel instead pounded Hezbollah’s “dozens of targets” with fighter planes and artillery in Wadi Saluki, southern Lebanon. “It was one of the largest attacks conducted since the beginning of the war. And it was completed in a few minutes,” commented an IDF officer.
In the Gaza Strip the Israeli army has lost 190 soldiers so far, while there are 24,285 Palestinian victims according to the Hamas Ministry of Health. Whose leader Yayha Sinwar has been included in the European Union’s terrorist list, with the related sanctions. “A moral and just decision”, commented Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, determined to “eradicate the roots of evil wherever it raises its head”.
Broad consensus among the 27 on an EU mission in the Red Sea
Among the 27 EU member states there appears to be “a broad consensus” on the need to act “rapidly and pragmatically” to ensure navigation in the Red Sea and counter the Houthis, creating an EU mission. A diplomatic source assures ANSA. Now the Political-Military Group will be asked to provide its “recommendations” and the EU Military Committee to provide military indications on the concept of crisis management “as soon as possible”.
In fact, in the morning the possibility of launching an EU mission in the area was discussed at the Politics and Security Committee (Cops) and the will was “expressed” to proceed with the proposal of the External Action Service to create a mission on the basis of the already existing Agenor – French-led – and with an area of operations “from the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz to the Red Sea”. Agenor is the military branch of the larger ‘Emasoh (European Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz), which launched on 20 January 2020 with a joint European statement of support and has been fully operational since 25 February 2020.
Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal are currently participating in the operation. The European Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz “aims to ensure a safe navigation environment, contribute to the de-escalation of tensions and facilitate an inclusive regional dialogue in the Strait of Hormuz”, reads the mission’s website.
On the situation in the Red Sea, Italy and France have expressed their willingness to “give rapid impetus to a European mission in which non-EU countries that share the importance of free navigation and whose trade routes are endangered by Houthi terrorist attacks could also participate”. This is what was discussed yesterday between Defense Minister Guido Crosetto and his French counterpart Sébastien Lecornu in a video conference meeting.
Shell suspends shipping through the Red Sea
British oil giant Shell has suspended all shipments through the Red Sea indefinitely after US and UK attacks on Yemen’s Houthi rebels triggered fears of further escalation. The Wall Street Journal reports this, citing sources informed of the decision.
Navy seal operation, seizure of missiles from Iran to Houthis
The United States Central Command with a post on X announced that in a spectacular operation i Navy seal Americans, supported by planes, helicopters and drones, boarded a vessel near the coast of Somalia in the international waters of the Arabian Sea and they seized Iranian-made missiles and components that were supposed to supply the Houthi militias of Yemen. Cruise missiles were also seized among the weapons seized. This same type of weapon has been used by the Houthis to attack commercial ships in the Red Sea. During the operation, two Navy seals were lost at sea.
This is the first seizure of lethal advanced conventional weapons supplied by Iran to Yemen’s Houthis since attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea began in November 2023, US Central Command says on January 11. “It is clear that Tehran continues to send lethal aid to the Houthis. This is another example of Iran actively sowing instability across the region in direct violation of UN Security Resolution 2216 and international law,” the US General Michael Erik Kurilla, “we will continue to work as regional and international partners to denounce and interdict these efforts and, ultimately, restore freedom of navigation.” The dhow was sunk.
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